Upcoming event was publicised on Steve Martin’s breakfast show at the ABC Ballarat studio Tuesday 21st February.
This is a free event

Hosted by the Ballarat Mechanics Institutes (BMI). Closer to the event The Courier (local newspaper) has offered to promote this event as a Media Flash and ABC Ballarat are interested to further publicise this event.
The first session will be held @ the BMI, Wednesday 22nd March 2017, from 7 – 8.30pm
The presentation includes:
• Finding the resources you need
• Tips on how to develop crucial research skills
• Learn the essentials from an Experienced English teacher who operated a successful tutoring service to VCE students for 12 years.
• Skills and advice learned at this session are applicable to other VCE subjects and tertiary studies.
• Find out how to best tackle each aspect of the course and address the key criteria of each area of study.
• Gain a head start for your exam preparation.
The idea for this event was prompted by my experience as an English teacher and private tutor.
Beyond the school setting education services and resources are readily available and for many years have been big business. However, many parents and students are often lost in terms of finding the best assistance and how to gain the most from the resources that they purchase. Many students and their parents are unaware that many of valued added VCE resources are free.

Mildred Pierce is an engrossing deconstruction of American society. Much as Raymond Chandler portrays the dark, seamy side with classic noir tropes, Cain does the same with a more intimate, domestic setting and characters. Read the rest of this entry »

Bibliography
• You need to ensure you produce a bibliography, have followed appropriate protocols as set out by your school and that your style is consistent.
• As you undertake your research ensure that you take notes and think about how you might use material for SACS and the Exam.
• Your research needs to be both broad and focused.
• Avoid falling into the trap of becoming fascinated by an area of interest and manipulating the material to address your context.
• Research is difficult and time consuming, can seem fruitless, and progress slow. However, constructive research is never a waste of time. You are required to study texts outside school prescribed texts used as stimulus for your SACS. Ultimately, you need to familiarize yourself with a broad range of ideas and discussions within other texts. This will stimulate and add to your understanding of your context.
• You are expected to draw on your own research, ensure that it is relevant to your context and to use your material with style and originality. This area of study does not lend itself well to students who expect ready-made answers from teachers and tutors. Even when you demonstrate a sustained effort and thorough understanding of your class texts you are likely to produce a text type essay.
• If you are planning to attend a university be aware that a large component of your studies will require individual research. Read the rest of this entry »

‘Our subjectivity imprisons us in distorted, partial views of reality’.

Expository Model Introduction Only

Each of us suffers from the partiality of our own vision of the world. We understand and interpret our experiences in individual ways because each of us is a unique individual. Hence, the world can only be seen with compromised objectivity and clarity. Read the rest of this entry »

Study is very hard on your eyes. Books, screens and notes all tire your eyes. One way to relax your eyes is hydrotherapy. Get a bowl of hot water (not too hot) dip in a washcloth then hold it gently against your eyes for 30 seconds. Then do the same with another cloth in ice cold water, or an ice pack. Alternate the hot and cold, each for 30 seconds, for three minutes. This helps relieve your eyes and is relaxing for you generally.

As the English Exam looms large year 12 students are most likely feeling the pressure of SAC (School Assessed Coursework) overload. This is not the time to take a break. Unit 4 and the Exam revision phase, which begins early term 3, require a greater degree of student commitment, responsibility and independent study. Read the rest of this entry »

I regularly review on Amazon and have written 197 reviews. As a writer, reading and reviewing is an essential part of my work as a writer. To read other reviews including those on current and past VCE texts visit Amazon here. Read the rest of this entry »